This patent application should be read in conjunction with patent PCT/AU2010/000358 “An arrangement for managing wireless communication between devices”, and patent PCT/AU2010/000938 “Remote control arrangement”, and PCT/AU2009/01711 “An arrangement for managing mobile device access to precinct regions containing services and products and information”, all of which are assigned to the assignee of the invention the subject of this application, and all of which are incorporated by reference into this specification, to assist the reader to understand one or more elements and features described herein that are not described in detail.
The success of the various forms of the modern remote control, have lead to a situation where they have become ubiquitous. So much so that the usefulness they provide is diminishing and is doing so at an increasing rate since our homes and places of work are bursting at the seams with a plethora of “controllable” devices including but not limited to audio-visual equipment, air conditioners, central heating systems, blinds and curtains, cars (door locks and anti-theft), garage doors and so the list goes on, each one requiring a remote control and then some devices such as temperature gauges, rain sensors, pressure gauges, etc that are not controllable but which provide information that may assist the user of a remote control to better control their surroundings.
According to research done by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), the average American home contains up to 6 remote controls (typically for controlling the Television (TV), Video Cassette Recorder (VCR), Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), 5.1 Receiver (sound processor and switch), Set Top Box (STB), Personal Video Recorder (PVR)) and this does not include those for the air conditioner (AC), garage, and cars and adding these leads perhaps 10+ remote controls that we use from day to day. Clearly the situation is “out of control”. This situation is not going to improve as we enter the age of Smart Energy and more generally Smart Resource usage. In this “smart future” a whole new category of controllable devices and information providing devices will become part of our day-to-day lives helping each of us to do our bit to minimize our use of the non-renewable resources of the planet.
In the future it is likely we will be surrounded by an infrastructure with which we can interact in a manner personal to each of us. However, will we need more controllers and remote controls or other human/infrastructure interface devices to control devices/appliances and extract information from them?
The invention described herein addresses at least some of the abovementioned issues and provides advances to the current state of the art or at least an alternative, by providing one or more of a number of solutions to the associated issues, which include; how controllers (remote control device useable by a human) communicate with and manage controllable devices/appliances and receive information from devices/appliances; how multiple controllers can be managed; implementing access controls for multiple controllers and multiple users; methods for establishing and managing wireless networks (at least one wireless communication link between two or more devices where one of the devices could be a controller); various other means for simplifying the process of user and device/appliance interaction; and providing a mechanism for physically expanding the functionality of a controller.